Jorenth Dalnock Roonrick Silverbirch
by Juntaine
Summary: A background piece I wrote to incorporate my new character into an existing campaign.  Jorenth  etc.  Silverbirch is a gnome with a problem; her magical abilities are not cooperating.  This follows her trials as she finds out who and what she is.


A/N: This is just the story I wrote to incorporate my character into an existing DnD group. Most of it is probably wrong factually, I have very little experience with the lore. But it was fun. You can tell at the end a bit of the mission we ended up starting. We never finished.

Anyways, enjoy!

* * *

Everyone has a story. Some aren't terribly exciting, while others have every sort of magical creature, curse, and exotic places possible. But no one can say that they have no story. Take me for example. As far as gnomes go, I grew up the same, surrounded by games, pranks, and family. Our particular family, however, had a secret. It wasn't particularly dangerous, there just wasn't a decent way to introduce it into civilized conversation. Gnomes are a friendly race, we get along well with most other races, but interbreeding isn't exactly what our elders had in mind for race relations. My mother's father was a dwarf. I guess he met my grandmother when travelling or trading or something. Janrath, my grandmother, was apparently quite attractive, so one thing led to another and then led towards Jindriska, my mother. Rather than allow invite gossip, my grandfather left and went back to his own people. To cover up the birth of my mother, Janrath married Daerpen, my current grandfather. I myself didn't know any of this until my mother decided I was old enough. The problem was that secrets don't really exist in gnomish society. Everyone knew, but everyone pretended it was a secret so the charade continued. So I had that going for me.

The irritating thing for me is that my mother doesn't really show much of her secret ancestry. I bear the full brunt. Probably one of those cases where the traits skip a generation. Just my luck. Most Rock Gnomes have fair hair, but mine decided that fair wasn't good enough and that it would be red, a sort of intermediate with the typical brown dwarven hair. I also have a somewhat fairer complexion, which led my mother and grandmother to speculate that my grandfather might have been a Mountain Dwarf. Not that it made any difference, mind, but it seemed to explain my physical variation. Not to mention why he agreed to leave, apparently the mountain types are less tolerant of such things than, say, hill dwarves. I still look like a gnome, thank 'Gold. My father, Treygan Silverbirch, was at least grateful for that.

But anyways, this slight hitch in our line was no obstacle to an otherwise fairly typical childhood. My parents married, had me and a few other kids, and life went on. My siblings and I spent many summers in that tree. If you're wondering about all my names, I'll just say that in Gnomish society your parents aren't the only ones to give you a name. I don't mind the extra ones, they're just a bother to spell out on any sort of paperwork.

Things got interesting when I got older, around the age that gnomish children start exhibiting magic abilities. All my other siblings gained their abilities at the right age, but for some reason I didn't. My mother and I spent many hours discussing it, figuring it was either because of my mixed ancestry or because of all the times my mother got drunk while pregnant with me. Eventually I started exhibiting basic skills, I could do the dancing lights, the prestidigitation, and other simple tricks we all have the innate ability for. Still, finding a profession was becoming a daunting task. I liked music, but I was never very good at anything other than listening. My parents and I decided one summer that I should set out on my own into the world, at the very least I could go have some adventures, find some pretty gemstones, and come back with good stories and jokes from foreign lands to make up for my deficiency. They helped me gather some food, clothes and a pack to travel and I set off. My village was quite excited and eagerly awaited my return. I was 32.

I had never wandered around much as a child, so spending the night alone in the woods was a wonderful experience. In the course of five days I had discovered 27 different ways not to make a fire. Things only got better. I'd never been particularly good with directions and I'm quite certain I travelled in circles until I found the river after about a week and a half. It should not have taken that long to walk a league. You can see the river from my village, for Glitter's sake. It was still exciting, I was curious about the outside world and wondered how I'd do in it.

I eventually got the whole camping in the wilderness down to the point where I was actually eating off the land and had a fire every night. I began to meet other races. I had always thought myself tall at 3'8" but adventuring brings on one surprise after another. Most adult gnomes are aware of these sorts of details, but remember I was still young. It was certainly interesting to discover the Halfling race. Sort of a kindred spirit in the "Four Foot and Under" club.

A matter of months later found me still in the woods. I think it was about then my magic began to express itself. My first clue was when I woke up one fine summer morning shivering under a frozen tree. I won't go into what my foggy mind was thinking for that first fifteen minutes, needless to say I was confused. Figuring it was some sort of forest prank, I dismissed it. Still, I found myself waking up several mornings to a warm sunrise and a cold tree. This went on for a few days, then one night I woke up to a bonfire. Fire will wake up the mind quite nicely, however it will set to panic mode. I knew the forest would burst into flames, late summer wasn't exactly the wettest season where I was. I remember thinking that it was too hot and needed to cool down, then the next thing I remember was me standing in front of a frozen tree with the remaining smoke choked off and dissipating into the approaching dawn. Being the smart cookie that I was, I had figured out by this time that I had the spark of something. I tried to repeat whatever it was that I was doing, but of course that never works. At one point I did manage to sent a ball of fire at a squirrel's hole, but luckily they got out of the way before the tree exploded. Let me tell you, angry squirrels run really fast. And they bite.

Several days later while nursing my injuries, I stumbled across some sort of structure next to a creek. Upon slamming my fists on the door, the door opened to reveal a well dressed human. Even with me being less than four feet tall, an upturned nose knows no height. I was informed that I had found a wizard's school. Usually they didn't accept outsiders, but infected squirrel bites are hard to turn down. While being treated, I explained to the nurse a bit about my story. I mentioned my magic ability, they seemed slightly more interested. Someone made an appointment with the headmasters or whatever they were called. It went well, relatively. They agreed to do some preliminary training to at least help me attempt to control my, shall we say, outbursts. In return, I did some chores, cleaning hard to reach places, attempting to develop a rapport with the animals to keep them out of the vegetables, and other small jobs. Meanwhile, I spent a few hours a day with one of the instructors who gave me strict instructions on how to call on my gift. I know that wizards don't really care for outside types, especially someone with an out of control ability like me, but they figured the odd jobs I did for them was payment enough. They didn't expect any results, and frankly neither did I. Still, I figured it was better than nothing and at the very least I could find a way not to call on my gift.

It was nice to have a roof and a steady supply of food, but eventually I began to feel restless again and my welcome was starting to stretch thin. Apparently switching the wine and red dye wasn't as amusing as I found it to be. What can I say? It's in my nature. Besides, they should have known better. The smell should have given it away. I didn't mean for them to actually drink it. It turned their mouths bright red for days. Definitely had a hard time with a straight face for those few days. But I digress.

I spent the winter there but by spring we all agreed that it wasn't really working out. For one, I still had no control over my gift while they had red mouths and I had long since come up with my own instructions for the local wildlife. I still smile whenever I think of all those chipmunks lined up on the dining room tables snatching all the silverware whenever someone tried to reach for them. It had been about a year since I'd left home, and while I was better able to care for myself, I still had no clue what I was going to do with myself.

I wandered the roads idly, stopping at villages and towns on the way, doing easy jobs for people of all sizes. I made inquiries about magic, but didn't really try too hard. I was enjoying myself. I made some friends wherever I went and developed a taste for ale.

They say as soon as you stop looking for something it will appear before your eyes. As the summer began to close, I found myself looking for a good town to winter in. A quiet mountain town called Jekthorne offered steady employment, good company, and excellent ale. I made friends with a human female named Cimryn. She had a good sense of humor and had lots of good stories. When we met, I told her how I'd come to be in Jekthorne and how I'd spent last winter with wizards. She laughed. She said she wasn't surprised that I hadn't gotten anything out of them since my use of magic was completely different from their methods. Studying, she explained, didn't work for one with innate abilities, those that were called sorcerers. I asked how she knew this, she smiled and said nothing. Of course, it was clear that the only ones who knew anything about sorcerers were sorcerers. She was obviously a magic user, you could tell. It was inevitable that I ask for her help, but I wanted to be careful. I didn't know much about sorcerers, but I doubt angering one was a good plan. I waited until I was sure our friendship was solid, then asked her. I was somewhat surprised at her eagerness, but she was really keen on helping me. I found out that she'd had a similar experience, apparently finding someone to help you control your abilities is difficult.

We shared a room that winter. Cimryn helped the local healer and occasionally accompanied hunting parties that came through during lulls between snow storms to look for big game. In the meantime, I worked at the inn and for anyone else willing to spare a few silver. The innkeeper was in on our little business. A nice guy, always gave me any food or ale that I wanted. Not that I could eat or drink much, I could never even hope to keep up with a thirsty human. In our spare time we'd go outside the town boundaries and find a quiet spot to train. I learned to control my gift, finding that if I focus and put my mind towards a purpose, I could call on it when needed. It was still shaky, but throughout the winter I became more adept. I started accompanying Cimryn on the hunting trips. The hunters found me to be a fun companion and they enjoyed my jokes and occasional prank. In return, they taught me basic fighting skills. Plus all that winter hiking and keeping up with larger sized folk was good for me too.

Spring then summer rolled around and we decided to stay. Summer there was beautiful and we continued to lead hunters into the wilderness. My abilities and control increased tenfold. The number of spells I could cast per day began to increase, and occasionally a new ability would crop up, usually in an inconvenient way. It took a week of the barmaid sleepwalking before we discovered I had developed the Sleep spell.

Cimryn also shared what she knew about arcane knowledge, but I never got to learn everything she had to offer. I knew our situation couldn't last forever, my kind has almost 7 times the lifespan of humans. Still, I hoped that someday we could travel together and see the world and develop my talent. Things changed when the innkeeper proposed to Cimryn and she accepted. I was happy, don't get me wrong, I respected Cimryn and any decision she made. Cimryn told me that she had been thinking of stopping the hunts and attempting to settle down. I stood beside her at her wedding then helped her load her things into his wagon. As they drove down the rutted dirt road to spend their honeymoon in a cabin farther up the valley that the innkeeper owned, I realized I needed to move on. Jekthorne was almost home, but there was more out there to explore. I had a basic understanding of my magic and knew that I was destined to become a sorcerer. The only way to satisfy myself was to leave. Packing my few possessions, I purchased a few items from the innkeeper. They were sorry to see me go, but such things are fleeting. People come and go, the only thing permanent is yourself.

I've spent the last several years wandering around. I've learned some new spells, they sort of just come to me. I'm always looking for a way to make money, I'm quite tired of doing chores for people. I want to expand my knowledge and become the sorcerer I have the potential to become. I often wonder if I would ever be tempted to settle down like Cimryn and give up everything, but I'm still young. I have plenty of centuries left to figure that out later. I never felt that if I was in her place I would have made the same decision, there's just too much of the world left to see and experience to be restricted in such a manner. I don't intend to live my life with a "Rent-a-Sorcerer" hanging around my neck for the rest of my life. I want purpose and I intend to achieve it.

However, things don't always go according to plan. Work for beginning sorcerers isn't exactly lucrative. I ended up in another inn in some town I'd forgotten the name of performing childish tricks for the inhabitants. Gnomes aren't exactly common, so all the tricks that gnomish children grow up with were new and fascinating for these men. I did sleight of hand tricks, ghostly sounds, mild telekinesis. In return, I received food, drink, and whatever coins the establishment tossed my way. I was depressed, I had hoped to do more with my talents. But I didn't have the funds or the connections to go anywhere else. The innkeeper, not as kind as my former employer, cleverly decided that my presence was good for his business. He managed to trap me by asking rent in exchange for my services. I was stuck, I barely made enough to pay this rent and his offer of food and drink made it impossible to leave. So I sunk into a routine of entertainment exploitation, doing what I needed to pay the rent and keep the innkeeper from getting the local authorities to throw me in jail, which would have probably finished me.

One night I was doing some of my typical tricks, moving a man's mug of ale just as he reached for it to the amusement of others, when I saw a man in the corner watching me. He was sleight, not particularly big, menacing, or strong looking. His gaze wasn't the typical one of amazement and drunken stupor. There was something else about this man that caught my attention. After everyone had either drunk themselves to sleep in front of the fire or had managed to do so in their own beds, I made my way to my little room. I heard footsteps behind me, I knew that that man hadn't had anything to drink. He'd been only interest in me, which, needless to say, was not a comfortable feeling.

I went into my room as casual as I could under the circumstances. The halls were deserted, everyone was drunk or asleep. Not that anyone would have come to my assistance anyways. I unlocked my door and went inside. It was dark, of course, but I didn't light the lamp. Instead, I used my ghost sound (as we gnomes called it) to make it sound like someone in the room was doing something. Meanwhile, I hid around the door frame, waiting for the inevitable break in. I was not disappointed. The door opened quietly. The hall, being dark, didn't illuminate him at all, probably something he'd planned on. However, I have good night vision and could distinguish his shape well enough. I used my prestidigitation gift to lift the lamp a good 7 feet above the ground and then dropped it on his head. The glass shattered, he gave a grunt and sort of half fell to the ground. He sat there in a daze. I then threw a ray of frost which knocked him on his back. That spell wasn't my strongest, but it was usually good for a stun or so. I then got on top of him and sat on his chest. I conjured some dancing lights that illuminated our faces. It was definitely the man I'd seen earlier. It took him a moment to recover from the lamp and my meager punch, but once he looked at my probably angry face, his face twisted into a smile.

"You are quite a handful, more than I expected."

"State your business or I'll continue to knock you on your rear." An empty threat; I had pretty much used up all my tricks that I knew would take down a fully grown human.

He laughed, obviously aware of that fact. "You took me by surprise, which won't happen again. However, now that we're sitting face to face, as it were, I have a proposition."

I snorted but didn't answer. I didn't move either.

He continued. "I'd like to offer you employment."

"I am currently employed, thank you. Now do I have to call the bouncer?"

This time he snorted. "You call this employment? Entertaining drunks with cheap tricks? I would have expected more of one with your talent."

He noticed my hesitation.

"You have a gift. I've seen you, I know what you are capable of."

My eyes narrowed. "How do you know what I'm capable of?"

"You're destined to be a sorcerer, that much is clear. I do not know where that path will take you, but I do know you cannot succeed if you remain here indebted to a greedy innkeeper."

"Who are you?"

"I am Seever. I'm a rogue by trade, but my employer has much talent at his disposal. If you agree to come with me, I can see that you get the training and experience you need."

"And my debt?"

"Paid."

I thought about this. Seever had been spying on me, but hadn't actually threatened me yet. Besides, what was keeping me here anyways? I hadn't had a chance to develop my skills, this Seever hinted that there were others out there like me, ones like Cimryn that could help me. And experience, the chance to travel the lands, seeing new places, that was certainly an attractive prospect.

"If I agree and I go with you, am I bound by contract or am I free to leave as I please?" I watched his face carefully for any hint of subterfuge.

"You would be expected to work, there would be travelling, spying, some fighting. My employer does not provide for those who do not do their fair share. However, should you feel the need to strike out on your own, you would be allowed to do so." He was leaning upwards, balanced on his elbows. His demeanor was decidedly relaxed. That alone made me uncomfortable, the nasty looking weapons he carried would easily slice my head off or pierce my heart should he had wanted to do so. He had as yet made no move towards them.

I nodded. "If you release me from this innkeeper, I shall work for your employer. However, if at any point I'm not getting what I need, I retain my freedom to leave when and where I choose."

"Done," he said. "Would you mind getting off, this is becoming quite uncomfortable."

"Hmph," I said, but got off.

He stood up and stretched. Then he looked at me and knelt on one knee as to face me better.

"May I have the pleasure of your name?"

"Jorenth…Silverbirch." I replied, giving him the necessary names.

"Well met." He seemed much nicer when he tried to be. "Well, it is late. I suggest sleep and I'll deal with your innkeeper in the morning."

"If you don't mind, I'd like to see to that. The only thing holding me back has been my debt. I owe him." I grinned, thinking up what mischief I was now free to release on my former employer.

Seever must have seen the expression on my face for he burst into laughter. "You are indeed a handful. Once your skills mature, you will be a force to be reckoned with, I am sure."

"Well, now that our business is concluded, I would like to retire." An uncharacteristically polite way of saying "get out."

He bowed. "Of course, Jori."

"It's Jorenth."

"Of course, Jori," he replied laughing as he went out into the hallway. I sighed. This man could get annoying.

The next morning I had my plan for revenge against the innkeeper. I won't tell what I did. Usually gnomes do things so that everyone can enjoy the prank. However, this was a special circumstance – this was entirely for my benefit. At the conclusion of my last job for the innkeeper, I left with Seever feeling smug and quite happy with myself. He didn't really know what I had done, but he did seem to have enjoyed the innkeeper running throughout the inn and the dining area screaming his head off, his wife close behind. Whenever I feel depressed or upset with the world, I always smile at that memory, the feeling of control and utter glee always lifts my spirits. Seever was true to his word, my debt to the innkeeper had been settled, I had the financial freedom to complete my end of the bargain. We left the town and began immediately to work on one of Seever's assignments. We stopped at a store and picked up a few things, I bought a light crossbow, a weapon he suggested would be good for my skill, size and occupation.

Seever had been trying to figure out what some man named Davíd was up to. The man's mansion was not far from the inn Seever had found me at. Even though my recruitment was not the main reason Seever had been in the inn that night (and other nights before then, I found out, which led to a bit of a lost temper on my part when I asked him to explain), but he wanted it to look that way. We made our way on the road south, making our way into the woods when we figured nobody was watching us anymore. Camping in the woods I got to know him better. Once I got over his initial introduction, which I found to be somewhat characteristic, the guy just didn't know how not to be a rogue. He also wasn't much for socializing, he spent most of his time alone. He did seem glad to have a companion.

Most of our time was spent hiding in the woods or doing surveillance on any traffic in and out of the town and the mansion. It was clear that Davíd was up to something. Our investigation revealed that the flow of materials indicated there was some sort of transport, likely by sea. The mansion was located on the coast, but there was no way to see by walking. The only way was to get inside the mansion and find it that way. Once he communicated this to his employer, he received word that another team of adventurers had been set on the same mission. We knew they would be trying to get into the mansion, our employer figured it would increase our chances of success if we were to join them.


End file.
